Complaints, Appeals and Disciplinary Procedure 1

							Complaints, Appeals and Disciplinary Procedure
New Procedures
The Education Committee of the University has approved that the procedures detailed
below supersede all previous appeals, complaints and disciplinary procedures from the
beginning of the academic year 2009-10.

The paragraph numbers below are those that apply in the Student Handbook

10.1    Complaints from Students
10.1.1 If a student is dissatisfied with the Institute’s educational or support services (other
than the award of credit, a mark, grade or qualification in respect of which the Academic
Appeals Procedure applies - see paragraph 10.2. below) the following procedure must be
followed.

10.1.2 Any student contemplating making a complaint relating to the Institute’s educational
or support services may contact the Independent Student Adviser studentadviser@cont-
ed.cam.ac.uk who will guide them through the process providing support and advice at each
stage.

10.1.3 The student should contact the Deputy Director of the Institute and explain in writing
the nature of, and grounds for, the complaint.

Informal process

10.1.4 The Deputy Director will acknowledge the complaint when received. Unless the
Deputy Director allows otherwise, a complaint must be made within three months of the
occurrence of the matter complained about.
If the complaint concerns the Deputy Director the complainant should address his or her
complaint to the Director of the Institute of Continuing Education who will follow the
procedures described below.

10.1.5 If it appears to the Deputy Director, on inquiry, that the complaint appears on the
face of it to be unjustified, misconceived or vexatious, the Director may write to the student
and invite withdrawal of the complaint. The complaint will proceed only if the student
responds in writing within 14 days and requires the complaint to proceed.

10.1.6 Where the issues raised by the student appear capable of effective and fair
resolution by way of informal discussion with the student and the person responsible for the
service complained about, the Deputy Director shall attempt to resolve the complaint by
such means and shall record the outcome.

Formal process

10.1.10 In the event that the complaint is not resolved informally or does not appear capable
of informal resolution, the Deputy Director will proceed to consider the complaint formally in
consultation with those concerned in the provision of the service e.g. the Course Tutor,
Internal Assessor, Programme Manager, Director of the Division, or other Service Manager.

10.1.8 Where a complaint puts in issue a matter of academic freedom and/or the
professional judgement and/or reputation of the person who is the subject of the complaint,
he or she shall have a right to put his or her case to the Deputy Director.

10.1.9 The Deputy Director will provide the student with a provisional response in writing
as soon as reasonably practicable, and in any case within four weeks of the initiation of the
formal procedure. The student will be invited to comment on the provisional response in
writing within 21 days. The Deputy Director will review the provisional response in the light
of any observations communicated by the student and then provide the student with a
written response in final form within 21 days after the date by which the student was invited
to comment on the provisional response.


                                               1
10.1.10 If the Deputy Director upholds the complaint, the Deputy Director will procure so far
as possible such remedy as he or she considers fair and equitable in all the circumstances.

10.1.11 If the student is not satisfied with the outcome, whether the complaint is upheld or
not, the student may request in writing the Deputy Director to refer the matter to the Director
of Continuing Education.

10.1.12 The Director of Continuing Education will convene a meeting of the Complaints
Review Panel to consider the complaint. The Complaints Review Panel shall be appointed
by the General Board of the Faculties. The Complaints Review Panel will consist of three
members of the University, one of whom will be designated by the General Board as
Chairman. Members of the Panel will not have any prior involvement in the case.

10.1.13 The Complaints Review Panel will arrange a hearing to decide the matter and it
may, as appropriate, invite the student making the complaint and others involved in the case
to appear before it.

10.1.14 The Director of Continuing Education will communicate the decision of the
Complaints Review Panel to the student, normally within 10 days of the hearing. If the
complaint is upheld the Panel will impose an appropriate remedy which may range from a
formal apology to financial restitution.

The decision of the Complaints Review Panel is final within the University.

10.1.16 All decisions reached by a Complaints Review Panel will be reported to the Institute
of Continuing Education Teaching and Learning Committee and to the Education
Committee of the University’s General Board.


10.2     Academic Appeals from Students
10.2.1 If a student is dissatisfied with a decision relating to the award of credit, a mark,
grade, or qualification the following procedure must be followed, except that, in the case of
International Programmes for which credit is only awarded by an external body, appeals
concerning credit must be taken up with the relevant external institution.

10.2.2 Any student contemplating making an appeal relating to the award of credit, a mark
or grade may contact the Independent Student Adviser who will guide them through the
process providing support and advice at each stage.

10.2.3 The student should contact the Director of the Division concerned in writing to
request a review and to explain the nature of, and grounds for, his or her dissatisfaction
within 21 days of the date of the student receiving formal confirmation of the decision
relating to the award of a credit, mark or grade.

10.2.4 The Director of the Division will acknowledge the request for a review when
received.

10.2.5 The review will be conducted by the Chair of the Awards and Qualifications
Committee who will consult the relevant Moderation Panel and, if appropriate, other persons
or bodies.

10.2.6 As a result of the review, the Chair of the Awards and Qualifications Committee may
confirm a substituted award in writing to the student, or confirm the original award providing
the reasons for the decision. The outcome of the review will be communicated to the
Director of the Division concerned.

10.2.10 If the student is not satisfied with the outcome, the student may submit an appeal in
writing, stating the grounds of appeal, to the Director of Continuing Education within 21 days
of the date of receiving notification of the outcome.


                                              2
10.2.8 On receiving an appeal in writing, the Director of Continuing Education shall request
the Director of the Division to provide within 21 days a full written report covering all the
circumstances leading to the appeal a copy of which will be provided to the student. The
Director of Continuing Education shall invite the student to make representations in writing
on the written report within a further 21 days and thereafter shall convene a meeting of the
Appeal Review Panel to consider the appeal.

10.2.9 The Appeal Review Panel shall be appointed by the General Board of the Faculties.
The Appeal Review Panel will consist of three members of the University one of whom will
be designated by the General Board as Chairman. Members of the Panel will not have prior
involvement in the case.

10.2.10 The Appeal Review Panel will consider all written documents relating to the case
including the report of the Director of the Division (as in 10.2.8 above), the student’s
representations and the results of any further enquiries the panel may make at its discretion.
If they agree that the matter has been considered fully and appropriately and that there are
no grounds for an appeal the student will be informed that his/her appeal has been
dismissed. If, however, it appears that the student may have grounds for making an appeal
the Panel will arrange a hearing at which the student is entitled to appear. Other persons
involved in the matter may also be invited to appear.

Following full consideration of the case the Appeal Review Panel may make one of the
following decisions:
     • Dismiss the appeal
     • Require the Chairman of the Moderation Panel to reconvene the meeting of the
        examiners to reconsider their earlier decision
     • Require the appointment of an additional external examiner and reconvene a
        meeting of the original examiners together with the additional examiner to
        reconsider their earlier decision
     • To re-examine the students’ work on the programme or course and, where relevant,
        examination papers, under whatever arrangements may be specified by the Appeal
        Review Panel.

10.2.12 The Director of Continuing Education will communicate the decision, with reasons,
to the student in writing, normally within seven days of the appeal hearing.

10.2.13 The decision of the Appeal Review Panel will be final within the University.

10.2.14 All decisions regarding Academic Appeals will be reported to both the Institute of
Continuing Education Teaching and Learning Committee and to the Education Committee
of the University’s General Board.


10.3      Disciplinary Procedure – Students
10.3.1 Disciplinary proceedings may be brought against a student who is suspected of
having acted or behaved in a manner which unreasonably interferes with the functioning or
activities of the Institute, or of those who work or study at the Institute, or which otherwise
damages the Institute or its reputation. The following is a non-exhaustive list of examples.

(i)      The use of plagiarised material or any unfair means in coursework submitted for
assessment or in examinations. Plagiarism is defined as submitting as one’s own work that
which derives in part or in its entirety from the work of others without due acknowledgement.
Unfair means shall include the possession in an examination of any book, paper or other
material relevant to the examination unless such possession is authorized. No member of
the Institute of Continuing Education or the University shall assist a candidate to make use
of such unfair means.




                                               3
(ii)     The disruption or attempted disruption of the teaching or administration of the
Institute’s work or aggressive or harassing behaviour, either physical or verbal, towards any
student, tutor or other person acting on behalf of the Institute.

(iii)    The abuse of alcohol or drugs on any premises where the Institute’s courses are
held, including transport and residential components of field-trips or excursions.

(iv)   The theft, damage or defacing of any of the Institute’s property or any property on
premises where the Institute’s programmes or courses are held.

(v)      Other behaviour inconsistent with the University’s General Regulations for
Discipline. University disciplinary regulations are given in full in the Statutes and
Ordinances: http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/so/pdfs/

10.3.2 In the case of alleged serious misconduct, the Institute, through its officers, reserves
the right to suspend a student immediately from the programme or course and to exclude
the student from the premises of the Institute of Continuing Education (whether the
Institute’s permanent premises at Madingley Hall or teaching accommodation elsewhere in
the University or outside) until investigation of the circumstances has been undertaken
according to the procedure below.

10.3.3 Any student against whom disciplinary proceedings are being taken may contact the
Independent Student Adviser who will guide them through the process providing support
and advice at each stage.

10.3.4 If it is suspected that a student has committed a disciplinary offence, the Director of
Continuing Education shall at his or her discretion decide whether disciplinary proceedings
should be instituted against the student. If it is decided to institute disciplinary proceedings
against the student, the student should first be informed by the Director of the Division in
which the student is studying and the following procedure followed. In the case of students
attending as part of a group, particularly on the International Programmes, the Institute’s
staff will decide the appropriate stage at which any accompanying external faculty member,
and/or the student’s home institution is contacted about the incident, and the extent to which
these parties should be involved in the following steps.

(i)      The Director of Continuing Education will appoint an investigating officer from
among the staff of the Institute of Continuing Education. The Investigating Officer will have
no prior involvement in the matter under investigation. The Investigating Officer will
investigate the matter under the direction and on behalf of the Director of the Division. The
Director of Division will give written notice of the issues under investigation to the student
concerned (and other members of the Institute’s staff where relevant). The Investigating
Officer will request a written statement from the student and seek information from any other
person thought by any of the parties to have relevant information. At the conclusion of his or
her enquiries the Investigating Officer will make a written report to the Director of Division.

(ii)    If the Director of Division decides that there is no prima facie case of a disciplinary
offence having been committed the student will be notified and no further action will be
taken other than any informal guidance and counselling which the Director of the Division
may consider appropriate in all the circumstances.

(iii)   If the Director of Division decides that there is a prima facie case that a disciplinary
offence has been committed the Director of the Division shall, unless it is decided to
proceed by way of informal counselling:

(a)       Convene a disciplinary hearing before a Panel of Inquiry comprising three members
of staff of the Institute of Continuing Education appointed by the Director of Continuing
Education. One member of the panel shall be appointed chairman of the panel. The
members of the panel will have had no previous involvement in matter to be considered.
(b)       Serve on the student a statement of the disciplinary allegation to be determined at
the hearing


                                                4
(c)      Provide the student with copies of all statements and evidence to be considered at
the disciplinary hearing
(d)      Advise the student that he or she may attend the hearing to present his or her case,
to give evidence and to call witnesses and that he or she may be accompanied by the
Independent Student Adviser, and/or another appropriate person (but not an external legal
representative) for support or representation as appropriate.

(iv)    At the disciplinary hearing the case for the Institute shall be presented by the
Director of the Division and where evidence is disputed, witnesses may be called.

(v)     At the conclusion of the consideration of the allegation the Panel of Inquiry shall
decide whether the disciplinary allegation has been proved.

(vi)    Where findings are reached that a disciplinary offence had been committed, the
Panel of Inquiry shall consider representations from the student or his or her representative
regarding the appropriate disciplinary sanction.

(vii)    The range of disciplinary sanctions available to the Panel shall include any or any
combination of the following:
(a)      Formal warning
(b)      Expulsion of the student from the programme or course
(c)      Suspension of the student from use of the Institute’s facilities
(d)      Debarring the student from subsequent enrolment on any of the Institute’s
programmes or courses
(e)      A fine not exceeding £100 or a requirement to pay compensation or make restitution
either to the Institute or any victim
(f)      Such other penalty as the Director of the Division considers to be equitable and
merited by the circumstances

(viii)   The student will be informed in writing within 14 days of the decision of the Panel by
its chairman and of the right to appeal against the finding that a disciplinary offence has
been committed or the sanction or both.

(ix)    In the event that the student fails to attend the disciplinary hearing the Panel of
Inquiry may, at its discretion, proceed to determine the issues in the absence of the student.

(x)      The student may appeal against the decision of the Panel of Inquiry in writing to the
Director of Continuing Education within 14 days of receiving notice of the decision. Notice
will be deemed to have been received 48 hours after posting by first class mail to the
registered address of the student.

(xi)    The appeal will be by way of a review of the decision of the Panel of Inquiry and not,
except where provided for below, by way of a re-hearing.

(xii)  The Director of Continuing Education will convene a meeting of the Disciplinary
Review Panel to consider the appeal. The Disciplinary Review Panel shall be appointed by
the General Board of the Faculties The Disciplinary Review Panel will consist of three
members of the University, one of whom will be designated by the General Board as
Chairman. Members of the Panel will not have prior involvement in the case.

(xiii)   The student will be invited to submit written representations and will be given 21
days, or longer on cause shown, to do so. The student will be entitled to appear before the
Disciplinary Review Panel and to be accompanied by the Independent Student Adviser or
another appropriate person (but not an external legal representative).

(xiv)    The Disciplinary Review Panel may also at its discretion conduct the appeal by way
of a re-hearing in which circumstances the procedure set out in paragraphs iii) and iv) above
shall be adopted. The Director of Continuing Education will communicate the decision to the
student in writing normally within 10 days of the appeal taking place.




                                               5
(xv)    In exceptional circumstances the Disciplinary Review Panel may at its discretion
refuse to consider an appeal should the grounds, on which the appeal is based, appear to
be without merit, vexatious or an abuse of process.

(xvi)    The Director of Continuing Education and the Disciplinary Review Panel may vary,
at their discretion, the procedure adopted from time to time to provide for the efficient and
equitable disposal of disciplinary issues.

(xvii) The Institute’s Human Resources Adviser may advise the Investigating Officer and
the Director of the Division on matters of procedure and may attend the disciplinary hearing
to give such advice. The Disciplinary Review Panel may appoint a suitable person to advise
it on matters of procedure and that person may attend the appeal hearing to give such
advice.

(xviii)   The decision of the Disciplinary Review Panel will be final within the University.

All decisions reached by a Disciplinary Review Panel will be reported to both the Institute of
Continuing Education Teaching and Learning Committee and to the Education Committee
of the University’s General Board.


10.4     Progress Review
If a student pursuing a credit bearing programme of study is observed to be failing to fulfil
the stated requirements for any part of the programme or for the programme as a whole in
such a way as to inhibit his or her chances of completing the programme successfully, the
Director of Division may initiate a Progress Review in his or her presence with the Course
Director or Tutor, Academic Programme Manager and the student. The Review will discuss
with the student his or her progress on the programme and measures which need to be
taken in order to provide the opportunity to complete the programme successfully. The
Progress Review may decide to issue a formal warning naming conditions and
accompanying dates which must be fulfilled if the student is not to be required to withdraw
from the programme. A record will be kept of the meeting and the terms and conditions
agreed upon. A letter will be sent to the student within one week of the Review meeting
confirming the terms and conditions which need to be fulfilled, including any relevant dates
and where appropriate, issuing a formal warning. If the student does not then abide by the
terms and conditions laid down they may be required to withdraw from the programme.


                                           The Independent Adjudicator
             When a student has completed internal review and complaints procedure in a
             University he or she may, if still dissatisfied, ask the national Independent
             Adjudicator to review the matter, this service is free to students.
             Please note that there are time limits for applying and some limits as to what can be
             reviewed.
             Information about the service is given at http://www.oiahe.org.uk/
             Students of the Institute of Continuing Education will automatically receive a letter
             and leaflet regarding the Office of the Independent Adjudicator at the completion of
             internal complaints, appeals and disciplinary procedures.




                                                       6